Souls, Bodies and Minds
by Everything you know is fangirl
Summary: Sarah comes back from her adventures feeling slightly empty. Soon she has to fix some difficult problems. How does one fix a broken soul?
1. Prologue

Ever since her trip she had been having strange dreams. She could gladly see her friends through her mirror, a rather makeshift portal, but she still had this sad feeling. The Goblin King had taken her brother, and she had defeated him. She should be happy and yet she wasn't.

The sad emptiness only came in her dreams. Every single one of them was the same as the one before. She dreamt she was with her friends from the Underworld. It was a beautiful day and they were in an imaginary field. Then all of that collapsed in, the world turning dark rapidly.

In the dark only her figure remained in the dark surroundings. There was a voice repeating her name over and over in the background, she keeps turning trying to find the source. The dreams continue for a year, after many tries of trying to get rid of them.

Her stepmother heard her screams in the night one too many times and suggested she go to a physiatrist. Sarah went there reluctantly just hoping the dreams would stop. The "head shrink" wasn't really much help. She could never really understand Sarah's dream with the vague details given.

In the meantime our young heroine was doing very well in school. She had made the transition from sophomore to junior quite nicely; earning herself the leading roles for a few plays as well. Then just as suddenly as they came, the dreams stopped. She was so happy, she called for her old friends from the labyrinth; who, because of her busy schedule she hadn't seen in months.

The dreams or nightmares as you may call them, ceased for a whole month. Then a new dream arose that left her tossing and turning. Except this one happened only once and once was surely enough.

_A young woman with long brown hair and sharp features smiled sinisterly. She had on a long scarlet dress, a black cloak draped over it. She gracefully walked to the blonde haired man lying on the ground. His regal looking clothing was ripped, red slashes with the rips. His face was battered, adorned with black and blue bruises. _

_He looked as if he lost all of his will to fight. The woman yelled at him to collect his dignity and stand up. Her voice was as cruel as her appearance. Once he gathered enough strength to stand, she grabbed him by his pulling his face up. His two mismatched eyes glared at her before she spoke._

_"You really shouldn't have done that. Accepting an heir without the elder's decision, how disappointing .Fraternizing with a human girl no less, offering your very soul to her; just so she could stay. We all know you don't even own this body much less your soul. You knew if you didn't find an heir soon we'd tear your soul out this body. You would become nothing more than a powerless human!" The woman spoke the words with venom. _

_To add to it all, she traced his chin with her pointer finger. All the while her face twisted in an ugly scowl. He just stood there like a statue, waiting for her next blow._

_"In the end this body is going to be stolen from you. Do you have any idea how long it took us to craft this body? Now a much more worthy soul is going to be living in it. I hope that girl was worth it Jareth, I really hope she was. First things first though. The elders told me as punishment I am to break your soul. It's much easier to take a soul from a body, once it's broken. That way the new Goblin King would be able to fit in this body. Once your soul withers away then we have to find a more new soul to be king, hopefully this one will be loyal. I would hate to break two kings in a row." _

_The "breaker of souls" raises her arm and let go of "Jareth". He falls to his knees as the red dust circles around him. It binds against as his screams fill the air._

She decides the very next morning she would call for Hoggle. She would ask him what is happening in the Underworld. After all everything would be all right, since that was only a nightmare. Just a bad dream, that probably didn't even happen. In the back of her mind though, she doubted it wasn't real.

* * *

Yet when she called upon her friends the next Saturday, (because she couldn't see them the very next day) they denied anything strange in the Underworld. She heard a hint of dishonesty in their voices but decided to ignore it. Ignorance, as they, whoever they may be, say is bliss. In this case it was more than bliss full but joy full.

She continued on with her life as she did before. After a couple of months of peaceful dreams she stopped seeing her therapist. It wasn't as if, Sarah's physiatrist was helping the situation anyways.

Junior year soon passed and the eve of senior year came. She went out with her friends from the drama club. She had fun, more fun than she had in years, and it had been a while since she acted silly.

Her stepmother was overjoyed when the girl came back. She had always hoped that her stepdaughter would find some friends. The high scholar always seemed so lonely, and lost in her own thoughts.

The young woman's little brother seemed happy too. He was walking around the house with that little grin that toddlers always have. He was the very first one to meet her at the door, running to it when the doorknob turned.

That before everything changed, though. Before everyone's life would be turned upside down and inside out. And they didn't even know it.


	2. The weird stepmother

The next day Sarah felt sore. She was never much of a morning person in the first place but now it was amplified. She had managed to get out of bed, if practically falling out of bed counted. Thank God it was a Saturday; she wouldn't know how she would manage the day otherwise. When she got downstairs her mood improved.

Her dad took the day off and was feeding Toby oatmeal. Her father was always a workaholic so him coming home put a smile on her face. Her father did some sort of work at the courthouse, she never really partially knew what. Her stepmother, Irene, was outside getting the mail.

S.W walked over to the kitchen table and passed it to the pantry. Surveying the pantry she looked for the most sugary cereal that she could find. Normally she would eat healthier breakfast but she was going shopping later on with Irene. She would need as much energy as she could get, even if it was shortly lived.

Her cereal pouring was interrupted by a scream. Fueled by adrenalin she rushed outside, clad in her white nightgown. What she saw was Irene unharmed, yet crouched by their black mailbox. Sarah, somewhat relived, briskly walked over to her.

When she reached her stepmother, Sarah saw the shock plastered on her face. On the grass in front of her was bird, but not just any bird but a snow white owl. It was bleeding from its wing and had its eyes closed.

_No, it can't be_, she thought as she crouched down to check on the little bird. She wanted it open its eyes. Yet, she was afraid if that beautiful fowl would open its lids, it would reveal mismatched eyes. She would hate to go back. Her stepmom put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"It isn't _dead _is it?" Ms. Williams almost whispered that blasted no good word. She almost said _he _but she caught herself thankfully.

"It dropped out of mailbox when I opened it. Who could do such do such a thing?" The married woman shook her head, eyes still in a somewhat faraway place. Then she, surprising everyone including herself, picks up the bird.

Sarah's eyes widened almost comically. Irene seemed to be in almost trance as she put an index finger right under the lower wing. After a few moments she pulled it out.

"What was that?" Sarah W. exclaimed looking at her father's wife like she was a madwoman.

"I had to check the pulse. It looked alive after the first glance. It is also a male barn owl and it got shot in its wing." The stay at home mother stated everything in a calm way.

Sarah was still in a very confused state.

"How do you know all of this?"

The housewife laughed out loud and closed her eyes. The owl was still in her lap; it was then that Sarah noticed what her stepmother was wearing. It was a pale pink housedress, with a white sash around her waist. After a while of laughing, the woman finally answered the question; stars in her eyes.

"When I was younger I always dreamed of being a veterinarian. I studied everything that I could about animals. I was especially infatuated with birds. After I turned twenty six though I realized it was a foolish idea. The things I learned never left me though. Male barn owls are smaller than females; I've seen real female barn owls and they are very large."

The same woman, who screamed when Toby brought worms into the house, was sitting with an unconscious owl in her lap.

_It sure is bleeding a lot, I wonder if I can do anything?_ The girl was bit unwary, not to mention the cool breeze was really uncomfortable.

"Shouldn't we um, I don't know, get inside?" Sarah suggested, noticing that some of the neighbors were starting to go outside to get their mail. Some of them were even gawking at the two.

"Yes that's a very good idea." Mrs. Williams picked up a little tote bag from besides the mailbox that Sarah didn't notice before. Gingerly she put the owl in the bag, talons first.

All the while Sarah just stared. Finally they got up together and made it to the door.

**Au: I am so sorry that this late. I'm such a horrible authoress. Yes indeed, this is a very creepy chapter. I kind of always wanted to put Karen/Irene/ Sarah's stepmother in a kinder light. It seems like she is always in a meanie in most stories. Myself, I've always envisioned her as having dreams of her own back when she was Sarah's age. Intense dreams like Sarah's own about becoming an actress. I wanted this to be a girly bonding thing, but in the end it ended up being really weird.**


	3. A Makeshift Cast

Irene Williams was never a very passionate person. She was stay at home mother who used to be a secretary at a local business firm. Yet, she seemed to honestly care very deeply for this bird. Sarah followed behind her, scrambling to catch up with Irene. Irene briskly walked towards the knee height table in the living room.

By that time, her husband had taken Toby out of his high chair in alarm. His face was even tenser when Irene set the dead looking bird on the table. Toby stood right next to his father laughing and clapping his hands. He was surely the happiest one in the room.

The blonde haired little boy then proceeded to run over to his mother, the strap of his overalls sliding over to his slim shoulders.

"Are you okay, honey?" Robert Williams had never really seen his wife so out of it.

She turns around and smiles at him for an answer. Toby had toddled over to her, not at all fazed by the owl on the table. He even went as far as poking the poor unconscious bird, much to the chagrin of his mother.

Mrs. Williams looked up at Sarah, eyebrows raised, impatiently. She lifted the bird's wing and proceeded to shoo her son away from the body at the same time.

"I need the First Aid's kit, some thin cardboard, duck tape and towel, please." Irene actually knew more about birds than she Sarah know. She had gotten into one of the most prestigious vet schools there was. Beforehand she had five years of college. After the second year of veterinarian school though, she dropped out.

When Sarah came with the supplies and the most curious look on her face, I.W began. She had examined the wound close enough before to know it wasn't bullet. Yet it gave all of the signs of a bullet, yet the wound wasn't very deep. The wound was just about as big as a hole where a splinter would sit. The blood from before had dried, Sarah's stepmother managed to get most of it off (after asking her stepdaughter for some water, of course.).

It was if a blade was plunged deep into the bird's soft under wing area, yet so swift and in such a fashion that it stimulated a gun wound. The vet school dropout shook her head for thinking such thoughts, that description sounded impossible. How old was she to be thinking of such foolish things?

The Mrs. Williams lost track of time when she was working on that bird. After a while, Irene wasn't really sure how long, she finished the makeshift cast. Even though no bones were broken, it obvious to her that arm needed some sort of support. She had fashioned the cardboard strips under the wing and propped up against the bird's chest. It would have to hold for now.

As it was mentioned before, it was a Saturday, and the clinics in their town and the next one over were closed until Sunday. She could ask one of them to fix up the bird in the afternoon. Right before Sarah's and her's shopping trip, she would stop by. After finished her makeshift job on the bird, she put it back into the bag.

She then turned to Sarah who had given up trying to figure out what her strange stepmother was doing. The champion of the labyrinth was sitting quietly and reading a fantasy book from her collection. Sarah was worried for the bird herself, but she had convinced herself that wasn't that big haired deviant that used to appear in her dreams. It couldn't have been, because the Goblin King was beyond getting hurt like that.

He was an immortal fey, one who acted on every whim and seemed to act like a two year old when he didn't get what he wanted. That was the way he was in Sarah's mind, forever immortalized as that and nothing more. Just in case though, she would call upon Hoggle and everyone else later and ask them if there was anything wrong in the Underground.

Toby and his father had gotten out of the way already. Robert had gone to the office/study with Toby and was typing up something for work. Toby was on the ground playing with their dog, Merlin. Merlin hardly minded the fact that Toby's playing was more like abusing. Toby's father always gave the dog a doggy treat, as a reward for sitting through it without a peep.

Irene flipped through her little phonebook for the number of their veterinarian's number. When she found it, she proceeded to ring him up. He had assured her that she would able to bring him in later in the afternoon. With that business taken care off she went to the study to get her toddler. It was just about his nap time so, Irene proceeded to take him into his room.

Once the curious little boy was dealt with his mother was back to normal. Her old veterinarian instincts had once again been buried into the back of her brain. She had pulled the reluctant Sarah away from her novel and the two were in the car driving away from the house in no time.

Sarah was rather moody, having almost gotten over the whole "owl incident" because she had to go shopping with her stepmother. She guessed before the trip that it wouldn't be very fun and that was _before _what had happened in the morning. To make matters worse when her step mother turned on the radio one of her least favorite artists was singing some tune.

Very tired of the events of the morning Sarah reached out and turned off the radio. Irene glared at her and turned it back on. After several times following this wordless pattern Irene decided to leave it off. Not worth the fight, since she was already stressed enough as she was.

The two had been getting along better than when back when Toby was still an infant. Yet, they were still on shaky ground. Sarah had grown up over the years, of course, but she still resented her stepmother a bit. The two had found a bit of a common ground with Toby Sarah having, shortly after her conquer of the labyrinth, taking an interest in her half sibling.

When getting out of the car, the champion of the labyrinth eyed the bag that held the owl and said.

"Isn't that against some sort of animal rights laws?" Sarah said.

Irene smiled back and retorted. "Possibly, but it's not as if it shall harm the bird. If it wakes up, it will most likely try to fly out. I would then open up the bag and let it fly free. He really can't be hurt any worse than whoever did a number on this bird."

Sarah frowned again and looked at the car. She really didn't want to go to the clinic. Ms. Williams was truly afraid of the possibility that this owl was truly Jareth the Goblin King. Paranoid was actually the right word, and if Jareth was going to pop into the vet's office; Sarah did not want to see it. In fact, if he did appear she decided that pretend that she didn't know who he was. Still, Sarah bit her lip wondering how to tell her step mother that.

"What's wrong?" Irene asked, worried by Sarah's expression.

"It's just that… doctor's offices freak me out; even if they are just for animals. Can I stay in the car?" Sarah tried to make it sound convincing. Truthfully, she kind of liked doctor's offices and sometimes hospitals. At least how clean they were and the smell of it; everything else she could kind of do without.

Mrs. Williams had never gone to a doctor's office with Sarah though, or even the vet. The two hardly ever went out together, if one doesn't count the odd shopping trip. So Irene didn't really have a reason to think she was lying. So, Sarah Williams stayed in the car the whole time while her stepmother was inside.


	4. The strange boy

Sarah Williams smiled at the bird in the cage in her room. It had only been two weeks since the bird was dropped off on her doorstep. Yet somehow it managed to win her over, in the way an unwanted puppy would. Not by sleeping on her feet when she was cold, Merlin already had that job or cuddling up to her when she felt sad. No this bird had ways of making friends out of enemies. Somehow the way it flew around the room, and sang its strange songs at night that always put her to sleep.

Strangely enough, the bird didn't always sleep in the morning and awake at night. Occasionally she'd come home from school and see it fluttering about. It spent a good time in front of her mirror for a nonhuman creature; it was times like that that made her think that the owl was actually the Goblin King.

She told herself: 'it was nothing '. Jared, as she called the owl, had soon healed after he came home from the vet. After only a couple of days perched on living room sofa he began to flitter about.

Not soon after, Sarah's stepmother had come home from the market one day with an ornate black cage, a chain on the top with a hook to hang on the wall. For a couple of days, the cage hung off of the mirror in her father and step mother's room. Though, as soon as lights turned off, the owl let out a large squawking noise that didn't let anyone in the house sleep.

So Sarah volunteered to have it stay in her room for a couple of days. The first night Sarah turned off the lights though, Jared was silent. Not a squawk or anything resembling it but instead a soft coo that put Sarah to sleep. Not long after, Sarah took all the responsibility of the owl.

Not to say that others didn't take care and participate in recreation of the Jared. Irene was the one who went out and bought the food for the bird. It made Sarah sad that soon the family's time with the bird would be over. In fact it would only be a few days before her step-mother would release the bird into the woods near her.

After a while of doing her homework alone in the empty house, Sarah decided to finally contact her friends from the Underworld. Silently, Sarah looked around the room before closing the door and smiling at the satisfying click. Lightly she tapped her finger on the opaque surface of the mirror, peering in and whispering:

"I need you; Hoggle, Sir Didymus, Ludo and everyone. I need you now, please come."

Resting her forehead against the cool glass she waited. For several minutes she waited there, until dark feelings began to settle in. Turning around, she found Jared somehow out of the cage and on her shoulder. Thinking back, Sarah wondered if she left the latch open or not. Absentmindedly, she stroked the bird's white feathers and letting a bemused smile cross her lips.

"Looks like we're the only ones huh? What happened, Jareth? Was it you who did this? I suppose from now on, you are going to have to have a white sheet draped over your cage while I sleep."

The champion of the labyrinth walked over to the cage again, shooing the bird inside. It was then that her stepmother and half brother walked through the door.

oooooooooooooooo

The day that the barn owl was going to be released came in the blink of an eye. Sarah true to her word stuck a white sheet over the owl's cage before she went to sleep. It didn't make a peep when she did and yet as soon as snuggled into her bed the strange strong song began. The brunette theatre enthusiast had tried several times again to contact her friends through the mirror to no avail.

She didn't spend a lot of time at home as an effect. The opening night was sliding in on her and though she didn't have the leading role, her part was just as important. She plays one of the minor characters who appear throughout the play, she probably had just as many lines as the protagonist.

The day before Jared's release, she came back from practice, she found her little half brother in her room again. The bird was sleeping in its cage and Toby seemed mesmerized by it. In his hands he held a clear orb; it was much larger than one of his hands so he used two to hold it.

Sarah seeing this rubbed her eyes making sure she wasn't seeing an illusion. When she saw that her eyes weren't deceiving her, she ran over and scooped Toby up. The little boy squealing and giggled, as always glad that his elder sister had come once again. Sarah tried grabbing the sphere from his hands and failed. Slowly and then quicker and quicker she started tickling Toby.

He let go of the orb then and Sarah dropped her half brother onto the bed. Speedily as she could she lunged at the sphere and caught it. She let out a sigh and glanced at the cage in the corner of her room; and stealthily she tiptoed over to the cage and opened it. The bird, almost as if on cue, opened its eyes and letting out a loud hoot and the brunette girl stepped back. She let go of the orb and saw it launch forward. The bird then flew forward, colliding with the clear sphere. All of that took place in a matter of a few seconds.

If one had blinked than one would have missed it and that was what Sarah did. Her eyes closed when she heard the screech of Jared and when she opened them up she had a surprise waiting for her. She forgot what she was going to do and a yelp stuck in her throat. It was then that her stepmother walked through her door.

Irene Williams looked around the room, glanced at the empty cage and the boy in front of it. Surprised she took a double take and saw an owl. Very perplexed she rubbed her eyes, and still saw the bird hovering in front of Sarah.

"I'm sorry, Toby just had to see his little owl friend. Am I interrupting something?" Irene raised her eyebrows at the scene, her son wriggling around on an unmade bed. Sarah eyes roamed around the room and as she realized how it looked. Raising her hands up waving them to and fro, sweating bullets as she frantically tried to think of an explanation.

"No, um, Toby was, uh, jumping on my bed." Sarah lowered her hands and lowered her voice to a soft tone.

"Oh, well then. When your father gets home he and I are going out. There is a benefit at his work and we wouldn't want to miss it. Are you sure your okay with Toby?"

"Yeah, Toby and I are going to be just great. As long as I get to spend Saturday with Chelsea and everyone else; and I'll be okay. After all, Toby isn't too much too handle."

Behind her back, the young brunette's hand was shaking. Taking a deep breath she watched her step mother walk away.

Once she pulled herself together, she called out to her stepmother who was halfway through the door of the woman's room.

"Um, Irene! Can you tell me where Toby found this?" Sarah held out the opaque orb, her hand still shaking, from behind her back.

"Oh, that. Remember when Toby moved into his big boy bed?" Mrs. Williams waited for her stepdaughter to respond.

"Yeah, of course I do. You dragged me to the store to get a second opinion for the bed. You never used my idea anyway." Sarah, couldn't help but have some sarcasm in her voice.

Irene remained completely oblivious and just plowed on.

"The most interesting thing happened when I moved the crib and took it apart. Somehow, I found that pretty crystal underneath his it. I put on your dresser, but that was months ago. I thought it might be a part of the make believe thing you do. That thing with all of the long dresses and talking in old English, remember when you used to play it back when you were fifteen?"

"Yes. Please go on. Did you see it anytime after that?"Sarah was beginning to grow impatient with Irene.

Irene blinked a couple of times, still confused. "No. Did Toby take your things again? Because if he did… well, you really should remember he's still a little baby."

"He's two. I think he knows what he's doing. Besides, I was worried about what would happen if he broke it. It's made out of glass and I wouldn't want him getting hurt." Sarah glanced at Toby, who was silent just staring at the two. Sarah then walked over and scooped him up, bouncing him on her hip.

"You have it and now and he isn't hurt is he. Just remember to put it away, or it'll be like you said my little prince might get hurt." As she said that, Irene glided over to her son and held out her hands.

Sarah wrinkled her nose at the nickname and gave the, now wriggling, toddler over. Sarah's stepmother walked away, tickled the moving little boy in her arms.

The brown haired girl nibbled on her bottom lip, for her mind was still on the event that only lasted for a moment. She knew her eyes weren't deceiving her, she _saw_ that strange boy who disappeared as soon as he threw the orb into her hand. The owl had flown back into his cage, his wide eyes staring deep into Sarah's own. The theatre loving young woman could feel her heart beat in her throat as she scrutinized the crystal ball. She knew what she had to do but that didn't make it any easier.

Clutching the orb she tried coaxing the bird out and it worked. When Jared flew out he landed on her shoulder though he was shooed away. Once the barn owl was floating in front of her, Sarah willed herself to stick her arm out. Ms. Williams held her breath until the orb touched the soft feathers on the chest of the bird. Sarah felt the form change as the orb stayed on Jared's body; for as the form changed her hand was pushed back.

Ogling the figure in front of her, she walked over to the door to shut it. When finished the young woman glared the person who was formally known as an owl. His eyes were an odd shade of green not very clear and it reminded Sarah of pond water. He wasn't that much taller than Sarah, maybe five foot seven, Sarah estimated. The almost golden quality of the young man's hair was the only thing that resembled the Goblin King. The boy's face was very much that of a baby, all round and no edges. _No way, this boy isn't the King of Goblins _Sarah Williams thought to herself. The young lady was right even if she was quite unsure.

Sarah continued to scrutinize him for a moment. His clothing was as medieval as the man known as Jareth the Goblin King; that much she was certain. His white shirt had grass stains all across the front and the sleeves of the fabric were ripped only fragments still there. His dark pants looked like it made from a crude material; and there was some dark red on the leg of it in size the lower one went. The boy wasn't even wearing any shoes and the blisters and sores on the top of his feet were an angry red color. In Sarah's mind there was no way someone with such a big ego as Jareth would let himself go to the point where he would look like the boy in front of her.

"Who are you?" Sarah whispered reaching out, only to have her hand slapped away by his.

Narrowing his eyes he replied with a gruff voice, not belonging in the body he resided in.

"I should be asking you the same. What sort of witchcraft have bestowed upon my body. Wherever have you taken me, I hope you shall take me back swiftly. I might be hesitant to fight with a lady in normal circumstances, but as you can see these are not normal circumstances."

The boy with the husky voice clenched his fists.


End file.
